Maryland Student-Athletes Show Out In Big Numbers For Terpsgiving, Reach 1,600 Donations

For Maryland student-athletes, giving thanks and giving back isn’t only confined to Thanksgiving. Instead, through Maryland Made, they participated in Terpsgiving from Oct. 8 through Nov. 12, allowing Terp student-athletes of all kinds to find different ways to donate to those in need. 

During this year’s Terpsgiving, SAAC partnered with the Office of Community Engagement to help decrease food insecurity on their campus and in the community. The goal was for the student-athletes on various teams to work together and to reach at least 1,000 donations between all the teams. 

That benchmark was reached and then some as the student-athletes made 1,600 donations. 

“I was excited to see how many donations we were able to give back to our community, especially here on our campus,” said community engagement intern Sydnee Strong. 

Taking advantage of the athlete aspect of “student-athlete”, OCE turns the annual donation drives into competitions. In the fall of 2021, the women’s soccer team donated the most of all the teams and won a pizza party sponsored by OCE. 

As Strong sums it up, “Who doesn’t like a competition every now and then? They are athletes of course they do!”

This year, the competition produced even greater results.

“With the help of student-athletes, we were able to collect and distribute over 3000 pounds of food donations for the College Park Community Food Bank and the UMD Campus Pantry between the October 8 Fill-a-Bus and Good Neighbor Day on November 12,” Antonya Huntenburg da Silva, an OCE employee, said. 

“To help us generate donations and excitement, teams of student-athletes competed to collect the most donations,” she added. “We're happy to announce that the Men's Wrestling Team won! We want to sincerely thank Maryland Athletics and the student-athletes for being good neighbors every day.”

Winning the donation drive always produces great pride for the victorious team—and this year was no exception. The wrestling team won’t forget their big win anytime soon as every member of the team donated at least 10 cans apiece.

“We want to be the best at everything,” wrestling captain Dominic Solis said. “It’s one thing to be really good on the mat or really good in the classroom, but we as a program want to win at it all. I loved how our team as a whole was so committed to the donations and holding each other accountable. At the end of the day, yes we wanted to win, but at the same age we also knew there is a bigger cause to help support.”

The donation drive was the big closer to an eventful month, but the Fill-a-Bus on Oct. 8 resulted in equally impressive outcomes. 

“We were able to showcase and fill the bus (with food) in one of the games,” said Gloria Aparicio Blackwell, the Director of Community Engagement, on a recent MD Made Podcast. “This is one of the ways we put action into a map by saying, ‘We know, we hear you, and we are here to support you for this effort that is supporting not only our university community, but also the surrounding area.’”

Working to decrease food density has been a particularly powerful cause for those involved.

“I have seen it and I’ve been listening to the stories not only from the community, but also from individuals on our own campus that are struggling at this time and having some food insecurity,” Blackwell said. “This is critical, this is not a game. This is not something we just picked out of a hat. This is a need. People need support in this.”

Fortunately, Maryland student-athletes proved their genuine support for the cause by turning out in such big numbers. 

“I am extremely blessed to be in the situation that I am in being at such an amazing school and not having to worry about where my next meal is coming from,” Solis said. “It’s a privilege to be able to support others who may not be as fortunate as I am and may be in worse situations. If I can help improve that even a little bit, it’s truly an honor.”

For others looking for more information about Terpsgiving and about OCE overall, listen to Blackwell and Strong on the Oct. 31 Maryland Made Podcast.